A STRONG LEAD CALLED FOR

Evening Post, Volume CXXIX, Issue 120, 22 May 1940, Page 8

A STRONG LEAD CALLED FOR

Trie reaction of the people throughout Britain and the, British Dominions to the grave news in the last few days proves one thing: that where a strong lead is given the response is quick, certain, and courageous. It is this that the leaders of New Zealand must realise. The public want vigorous action; they are asking for it. Measures taken by other Dominions to accelerate their war effort have provided striking evidence of the determination of the British people throughout the world to accept their share of the responsibility of countering the menace of Nazi aggression. Particularly heartening news comes from Canada. Already this great Dominion has made a magnificent contribution both of men and material, and now it has been spurred to even greater efforts by the gravity of the military situation in Belgium and France. Steps have been taken to advance the date of the dispatch of the second Canadian division overseas, to raise a third division, and to speed up the recruiting of reinforcements. In other directions, too, Canada is extending its operations, both at home and abroad. Canada fully realises the grave danger to which the Empire is exposed. As spokesman for the nation, Mr. Mackenzie King, addressing the House of Commons in Ottawa yesterday, issued a warning that Germany was seeking to seize not only England, France, Belgium, and Holland, but also great areas for development. Canada, he said, could not afford to overlook any possible development. These words are pregnant with meaning for the whole British Commonwealth of Nations. .No longer are the Dominions safe in their isolation. Their fate depends as much on the outcome of the grim battles being fought on the fields of France and Belgium as does the fate of Britain and France, and if the tide of Nazi aggression is to be stemmed they must rally to the side of the Allied forces now fighting their battle with grim determination and courage. The plain duty of the Dominions is to provide not only for (their own defence but also to send men and materials as quickly as possible to the present theatres of war. Canada has shown what it is prepared to do and the other Dominions can afford to> do no less.

The answer of Australia is an intensified drive for recruits, with "Now or Never" as the slogan, and already there has been a thrilling response. Almost 1000 men joined up in Sydney alone yesterday, and of these 450 went direct to camp in special motor vehicles. Such a response proves that the true British spirit lives on in the Dominions. In New Zealand there has been a quickening in recruiting since the full import of totalitarian war has been brought home. But there is a strongly expressed public feeling that neither this nor the new home defence measures represent all that this country can and should do. The Leader of the Opposition, the Chamber of Commerce, the People's Movement, the Returned Soldiers' Association, and numerous other bodies are calling for more action. There is widespread disappointment that the Prime Minister, while fully stressing the gravity of the position, announced only moderate measures to meet it. In service, in production, in sacrifice the people are not questioning any demand made upon them if it is wholly and truly a war demand. They are ready for it. They have been stirred by events and are eager for action. This action should take the form of the speediest introduction of universal service, greater vigour in speeding production, and the urgent discovery and removal of weak points in our organisation. M. Reynaud has called upoia the workers of France, already working twelve hours a day, to work harder, British Labour leaders have issued equally spirited calls. How can we think to go on as if nothing mattered but adherence to standards set before war struck civilisation? The people of New Zealand do not expect this. They do not want it. They look for bold leadership to ask more of them. Now is the time when the Government should give it